Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2011 11:51 amPosts: 6025Location: United States of New England

my friends have a super duper sweet lovable pitbull they need to rehome. it sounds like she cant be crated for long hours which they need to do because of their work schedule. they feel she isnt getting what she needs in their home and she needs a new home.

ive met this dog a bunch of times and she is just a big smushy bundle of love that wants to slobber and kiss everyone she meets. they've had her since their son was 3ish (i think) and she is great with him. she lets him tug on her ears and ride her around like a horse.

my husband and i would probably take her if we didnt already have two dogs of our own, own highly dog reactive, and we also have a similar work schedule.

I hope they find a home for their doggie, but re-homing via craigslist makes me so nervous. There are a TON of resellers on there who will pretend they want to adopt a dog and give her a loving home, and then they will turn around and sell the dog for a profit. I actually met a woman recently who purchased a dog from a reseller. The reseller was renting a hotel room where she did all of her pet selling business so that no one could trace her back to her real address.

If they don't want to actually put the dog into a shelter or rescue, they could ask local rescues if they could post a picture of the dog on their websites as a courtesy post.

Any adult citizen of the United States, even a convicted felon, can acquire a USDA license to sell dogs to research institutions. There are two kinds of dealer licenses. Class A dealers, according to the broad terms of the act, breed dogs for sale. When they buy from Class A dealers, institutions have some assurance that they are buying dogs intended from the outset for research. But many institutions buy their dogs from both Class A and Class B dealers; the dogs sold by Class B dealers are less expensive and may offer a broader range of research subjects. This is where most problems lie.

Class B dealers are permitted to buy dogs from unlicensed sellers, known as "bunchers," as long as the bunchers can prove that they bred and raised the animals on their own premises or obtained them from someone who did. This restriction is aimed at ensuring that each dog can be traced to a legitimate owner -- that the animals are not stolen or obtained through fraudulent means.

For those unconcerned with the law, dogs are easy enough to come by. Bunchers may cruise neighborhood streets, picking up any dogs they encounter. They may obtain unclaimed dogs from veterinary clinics by offering to find homes for them, and may answer "free to good home" ads placed by owners trying to find someone to care for dogs they can no longer keep. Often a buncher answering such an ad brings along a child, in order to create a convincing picture of a welcoming home.

The price structure that has evolved puts certain breeds particularly at risk. The most valuable dogs are Labrador retrievers, German shepherds and shepherd mixes, Dalmatians, spaniels, golden retrievers, hounds, and border collies. Sometimes called "serum dogs," owing to backwoods folklore that a serum made from the blood of these dogs could cure cancer, they are prized by labs because they have large chests, which make them preferred subjects for cardiovascular research. Labs will pay a dealer as much as $800 apiece for them (the dealer has paid the buncher about $25 apiece). Serum dogs are generally guaranteed to remain alive for seven to ten days after purchase. Less-desirable breeds and mixes are sold by the pound, as "junk dogs" (usually guaranteed to live for a week) or "acute dogs" (guaranteed for only forty-eight hours).

_________________My oven is bigger on the inside, and it produces lots of wibbly wobbly, cake wakey... stuff. - The PoopieB.

If they need to get the dog out asap, they could contact the worcester animal rescue league. I know they have limited space there, but it's a no-kill facility, and they rehome a lot of pit bulls. http://www.worcester-arl.org/

I'm sorry we sidetracked your efforts of just trying to find a sweet and lovable pit a home, Lisapunk! That story about bunchers really upset me, even though I've heard it before.

I really hope your friends can find someone who will give their dog a forever home. We were in a position where we found a sweet, undernourished stray dog who we named Luke. Our other dog, Ella, never got along with Luke, ever. It took awhile- over a year, actually- but one of my good friends many states away decided to adopt Luke, and he had a lovely life, (even retiring to Florida in his old age). I hope the pit gets a wonderful life as well- it's great that you are trying to help him.

_________________I once caught the clap from a salty navy bean on shore leave. Damn beans.--Desdemona